The ABC News Political Radar blog says John McCain is backing off his previous plans to undermine the pro-life plank of the Republican platform:

McCain’s plan to take a hands-off approach with the abortion platform stands in stark contrast with the position he took during his first presidential run.

Back in 2000, McCain clashed with then-Gov. George W. Bush over his unwillingness to change platform language that called for a human life amendment banning all abortions.

Here is a video of McCain and George W. Bush arguing over the plank in 2000.

Of course, it helped that people quickly made their opinion known when it was floated recently that McCain might choose a pro-abortion VP.

And other pro-life leaders have made it clear what the consequences of undermining the pro-life plank would mean:

“If he were to change the party platform,” to account for exceptions such as rape, incest or risk to the mother’s life, “I think that would be political suicide,” Tony Perkins, the president of the conservative Family Research Council, told ABC News in May. “I think he would be aborting his own campaign because that is such a critical issue to so many Republican voters and the Republican brand is already in trouble.”

Let’s hope (but not take for granted) that McCain has learned something here.